With Empty Hands
by NinjaGamerFF
Summary: Reaching the limit of his training Inuyasha is sent to a mysterious school built with the intention of creating the worlds best martial artists. He discovers that his classmates are not weak as believed and that the real threat lies within a rival school
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any characters associated with it. This story is rated for a mature audience.**

_Smack!_ The sound of wood against flesh echoed around the rocky surroundings. "Ow! What was that for!" the boy cried, angrily rubbing at the growing knot on his head.

"Pay attention! Do not let your guard down!" the elderly man scolded, leaning heavily on the long, sturdy wood pole. "Again!"

"Again you say—how am I supposed to defend myself with my eyes closed?" the boy asked as he eyed the man in contempt. _Whack!_ Even with his eyes open, the wood seemed to vanish before reappearing against his head. Pain quickly followed. "Ow!" he hollered in surprised rage.

"You see? Your eyes are a weakness! Do not see the attack, _feel_ it. If you wait for your eyes to tell you what to do, it's already too late."

"I don't see how I'm supposed to do that," the boy muttered under his breath. _Whack!_ The boy let out a yelp.

"Again!" Rubbing his sore head before quickly returning his hand to his lap, the boy took a deep breath as his eyes closed. Surrounded by darkness, the boy focused on slowing his breathing like his teacher had taught him. With his sight gone, the world seemed to grow louder. The trees rustled around him, birds chirped happily and the sound of a distant waterfall roared into his ear. _Smack!_

"Argh!" the boy screamed in frustration, throwing both arms in the air. "That really hurts!" he shouted, glaring at his elder.

An amused smile crossed the old man's face. "Then block it. Again!" Grumbling angrily to himself, the boy closed his eyes.

**Ten Years Later**

Eyes closed, Inuyasha calmed his thoughts, focusing on nothing. In the absence of mental chatter, he felt nothing, saw nothing, heard nothing. A complete peace rolled over him, submerging him. His body moved on its own. There was a tiny sting against his arm as the wood impacted against it. Instantly, the pain faded into nothing, lost in the tranquility that coated his mind. There was no conscious decision on his body's movements as he dodged and blocked the incoming strikes against him. Forty strikes later, he opened his eyes to see the elderly man nodding in approval.

"You have finally mastered your father's defensive skills."

Inuyasha shook his sore arms. Now that he was conscious of his movements, the stinging pain had returned. "It's not that helpful." Growling, he rubbed his sore upper arm. "Damn it Myoga, why do you have to hit me so hard?"

"Then don't get hit!" he shouted, thrusting the wooded staff at Inuyasha's face. Instinct kicked in, causing Inuyasha to bend and twist backwards so the staff missed by mere inches. Continuing his twisting motion, Inuyasha's feet left the ground as he spun in the air, dodging Myoga's sweep as the old man bent low to the ground, spinning as he went. One foot planted against the ground, Inuyasha continued rotating as he flattened towards the ground, narrowly dodging the wooden pole once more as Myoga brought it around like swinging a bat. Both feet spread firmly against the ground, Inuyasha slid out of range as Myoga spun the staff in a figure eight with blinding speed before slamming and end against the ground at his side.

"Damn it old man! Stop doing that!"

Smiling, the man straightened his back, sliding the staff to rest in front of him and holding it with both hands. "You move like your mother. Speed, power, technique, I don't believe I have anything left to teach you."

"Heh, we finally agree on something old man," Inuyasha said, relaxing his guard as he ran the back of his hand against the end of his nose.

"Which is why I enrolled you in school," Myoga continued, nodding to himself. For a brief second, there was silence.

"Huh?" Inuyasha asked dumbly.

"There is still much for you to learn."

"You're kidding me right? I'm at your level! How could school possibly help me?" Before Myoga could answer, Inuyasha took a step forward, pointing towards his mentor menacingly. "And don't give me that 'knowledge is power' bullshit."

The old man chuckled softly. "No. While powerful in their own way, you are not the sort of fighter who engages with the mind and I don't intend to try and mold you into one. Rather, what you lack now is not skill, but experience. Sparing with me has increased your level tremendously in a short period of time, but you lack variety. I have done my best to switch styles, but even I have my limits. I'm afraid my moves have become predictable." He wore a wide smile, his eyes narrowing. "Besides, this isn't an ordinary school. I believe you will find it _quite_ enjoyable."

"Still, I don't want—"

"You wish to be strong correct?"

"I _am_ strong!"

"But you have not yet reached your limit. Do not become content with your position. Advance, push yourself to new levels."

"And when I reach the top? What then?"

Myoga smiled. "Well… when you get there, that decision will rest solely in your hands."

Sekkoken Academy held the appearance of any other rich private school. Campus was a good thirty minute drive from the nearest town, nestled securely in the valley between two pristine mountains. The grounds themselves were massive. For all intents and purposes, campus was considered a city by itself holding many luxuries that the surrounding towns lacked. Shops, arcades, numerous restaurants and a movie theater were just a few of the things located at or around the main school buildings. The school itself was divided into three sections, the school where classes were held, the activity grounds, and the student dorms. The students were just as one would expect at such a rich campus. Everyone carried themselves confidently, like they held all the power in the world. Then there were the uniforms. It was the first thing Inuyasha learned about the school and the first thing he came to hate about it. The dress code was oppressively strict. Men wore black slacks, a white button-down shirt with the school crest over the heart and had the option of a red, blue or black tie. The women's uniform was a green or red skirt, white blouse with the crest in the same location as the men's and a red or black tie. The moment he arrived on campus, Inuyasha, to his joy, discovered that skirt length was completely governed by the women that wore them and short skirts ruled. A gentle breeze and Inuyasha glimpsed more of what the skirts hid underneath than he could count on both hands. Being from a small village, being around women his age was a rare luxury and being near _attractive_ women his age was a far off dream. Seeing just the few girls wandering outside made him realize that school might not be such a waste of time after all.

The taxi dropped him off at the front of the main school building. It was a massive white building that reminded him more of a palace than a school building. It was three stories tall with wide windows spaced evenly across the front. The taxi driver unceremoniously dropped the few bags Inuyasha had brought at his feet and scampered away. The tires squealed slightly as the taxi sped away. Frowning in displeasure at the driver's attitude, Inuyasha bent over and collected his bags. _I'm glad Myoga didn't tip the bastard._ _What lousy service. _Climbing up the steps, he cautiously pushed open the heavy wooden doors and entered the building. If he thought the outside looked like a palace, the inside _was_. Inuyasha thought he had entered a house rather than a school. A lush red carpet lay over a polished cherry wood floor. The stairs at the far end of the entranceway spiraled up to the second and third floors. Massive golden chandeliers hung from the ceiling above. Paintings of what Inuyasha could only guess as previous principles or owners decorated the walls. The thing that caught his eye wasn't the ornate decorations or lavish building materials, it was the weapons. Cases and cases of weapons were displayed all throughout the school lobby. Swords from all cultures, various staffs, handheld weapons, and brass knuckles were just some of the weapons Inuyasha could see from his position. Even more amazing was the fact that every piece of equipment was in pristine condition. Lost in awe, he wandered the room, examining the weapons up close. The entire display was almost a sickening display of wealth.

"Impressive, isn't it?" The female voice caused Inuyasha to jump. Spinning, he found a squat, angry looking woman smiling at him. "You must be Inuyasha. I am Kaede, principle and head of Sekkoken Academy." She gave him a quick once over. "Hmm, I can see why _he_ sent you here."

"Excuse me?" Inuyasha asked defensively as he cautiously took a step back.

"That old flea of a man, Myoga," the woman spat. "Usually we don't allow transfers. Past history has shown that most transfer students don't – acclimate – to our teaching style. You are an exception."

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow. _Flea of a man? Yeah, that _is_ Myoga._ The description almost made him chuckle. Something told him Kaede wouldn't like that though. "You know Myoga?"

"Know him?" she snarled bitterly. "How do you think I got this?" She tapped just under her right eye, bringing attention to the large black eye patch she wore.

"I-I'm sorry," he floundered uncomfortably. He knew Myoga had been quite the fighter in his younger days, but maiming someone? A woman even! While Myoga was hard as hell as a teacher, once the tough shell of his teacher melted away, it was replaced by a kindly old man. It was that kind old man that took him in and raised him after his parents died. It just didn't sit well with Inuyasha, seeing the aftereffects of his guardian's past actions. If what she said was even true… He couldn't help but feel that there was some larger story behind it.

"Bah, it was a long time ago," she said, waving it aside. To his surprise, she actually _sounded_ like she was over it. He didn't think he would settle for anything less than death if someone did that to him. "But for him to go behind my back with the Council…"

"Council?"

She paused for a moment, as if realizing she had said something aloud she shouldn't have. Once more, she brushed it aside. "You will learn of these things soon enough. Come, I'll give you the tour." As Inuyasha moved to follow, she noticed his bags. "Leave them here. Someone will bring them to your room."

"Uh… okay," he said, slowly lowing his bags to the floor. Casting an anxious glance over his shoulder at his discarded things, he walked after Kaede. They had walked no more than thirty seconds when he noticed her staring at him. "Something wrong?" he asked uncomfortably.

Her eyes narrowed. "The way someone walks tells a lot about them – if you know what to look for."

"Oh?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. Myoga had told him things like that. He didn't believe Myoga then and he certainly didn't believe this crazy old lady now. "And what does my walk say about me?" he asked, deciding to play along.

"That you're arrogant, overconfident in your abilities, completely reliant on brute strength and lack actual combat experience and finesse."

_Wow! You must be psychic!_ Inuyasha thought sarcastically, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. _Next she'll tell me I'm a male half-demon and I'm starting school!_ "That so," he said flatly, an ear twitching in annoyance.

"But, I can tell why Myoga sent you. I can also tell why the Council agreed to accept you despite your apparent handicaps."

"Handicaps! I'll have you know—"

A crash cut him off as one of the classroom doors exploded outward a few feet from where they stood. Wood splinters clattered against the floor as the body that went through it slammed against the wall opposite the door. For a second, Inuyasha thought the bloody kid was going to get up again, but at the last second, his eyes rolled up into his head and his head fell limp against his chest. A woman stepped through the destroyed door, surveying the scene before her. Her uniform was in tatters as she used a gloved hand to wipe the blood that trickled from her nose. Seeing her unconscious foe before her, she turned her head and spat blood against a chunk of what remained of the door. Completely ignoring Inuyasha and his guide, she turned to look into the classroom.

"Sensei, I think he's done," she said calmly, pulling her frayed black hair back. A sickly bald man waddled past her, checking the coconscious boy carefully before nodding in agreement. He cleared his throat a few times before speaking.

"I, Jiro, hereby declare Kagome the winner. As per the agreement, all Kagome's homework will be passed to Ko for a period of two months, who will complete the homework to the best of his ability or face punishment as deemed acceptable by the student disciplinary committee." He waved back into the classroom and two students rushed forward to carefully pick the unconscious student up. "Take him to the infirmary." Nodding, the two students rushed off, carrying the injured boy between them.

For seemingly the first time, the woman noticed them standing there. She broke out into a wide grin, her brown eyes hovering a few seconds longer on him. "Hello Kaede-sensei," she said with a small bow as she turned her attention to the old woman beside him.

"Kagome! Getting into more fights are you?"

She shrugged, a look of helplessness on her face as she tucked the hair in her face behind her ears. "They keep challenging me."

"What the hell's going on here!" Inuyasha whispered harshly, leaning towards the old woman. He knew Myoga wasn't sending him to a regular school, but this girl had just kicked the crap out of someone! Even more, people were acting as if it were a perfectly natural thing to happen!

"Ah, Kagome, perfect timing." Kaede gave Inuyasha a nudge, causing him to take a few steps towards the girl. "This here is Inuyasha, a transfer student."

"Transfer student?" Kagome looked confused, giving him another quick look over. "I thought—"

"Yes well, someone pulled some strings for him. Can you give him a quick tour?"

Kagome was silent for a moment. Finally, she nodded. "If you don't mind stopping by the dorms first, I'd rather not walk around half naked longer than I have too." Her words brought Inuyasha's attention to the state of her clothes. Her blouse was ripped open, revealing her white bra and smooth, toned skin previously hidden underneath. Her green skirt was also torn and ripped in various places, but it didn't reveal as much as her top. The tattered tie did a lame job of covering what her ripped blouse didn't. He suddenly realized his face was flushed. Seeing his reaction, Kagome crossed her arms over her chest, eyes narrowing. "It will only take a moment," she continued, a grave tone in her voice.

"I-I don't mind," Inuyasha said, averting his eyes towards the ceiling as he idly scratched the tip of his nose. He had no idea why he was looking at the ceiling, but it suddenly felt like it was a better choice than to continue looking at her. The unconscious boy was proof that she was more than a regular girl.

"Yes, well, as long as it is done," Kaede said, waving her hand dismissively. She turned to walk away, but turned back suddenly. "And be sure to tell him about this school's unique – structure. Be off then," she finished as she turned her back to them and walked off in the direction they had come.

Kagome let out a sigh, rubbing her forehead with the back of her gloved hand. "Come on then," she said with an obvious tone of displeasure. "I guess I'll show you the dorms first."

Without another word, she stepped over the debris from the door and headed off Inuyasha following silently behind her, wondering just what the hell he was getting into.

Inuyasha felt like his head was going to come off. His mind was swimming in images of locations. The male and female dorms sat across from each other. Members of the opposite sex were free to visit the other building until ten. Breaking the rule meant punishment from the student disciplinary committee. Just what the punishment was she didn't say, but from the tone of her voice, it was something he would be better off not finding out. Once she had changed her uniform, they were off again. Inuyasha had to admit, she was rather striking in her uniform. Unlike most of the girls he had seen on his tour of campus, she wore a green skirt rather than red. He really liked her long black hair as it cascaded down her back, a sharp contrast with her white blouse. She walked with brisk determination, a focus in her lovely brown eyes as she pointed out locations. To be honest, he had been paying more attention to her than on what she was telling him. He vaguely recalled where certain areas of the school were. It was something he would find out in time. Right now, he had much more interest in the girl. Living in the mountains nearly his entire life, this was the first time he had ever been so close to one his own age for so long, let alone one this attractive.

"So that's everything you need to know about the main school building," she said, pulling a few strands of her hair behind her ear. Inuyasha thought the move was quite sexy. He almost missed what she said next. "I guess I should tell you about the fighting system."

He blinked. "The what system?" There was no way he heard correctly.

A grin formed on her face as she turned to face him. "The fight system; I believe you caught the end of one this morning."

"Uh…" It brought back the memory of her tattered clothes, making his cheeks heat.

"It takes some time to get use to, but you should catch on quickly. Most students have their freshmen year to get acclimated to it. You unfortunately, don't. As you may have noticed, this isn't like a regular school."

"That much is obvious." She frowned at the interruption. "Sorry," he said, face reddening.

"The student body is made up of fighters of every skill and style from all around the world. They all come here to improve their skills against fighters of all different levels."

Inuyasha found himself frowning. "I thought this was a school."

"It is. We still have lessons to attend as well as homework and tests. Fighting is only another means in which to test our abilities."

Scratching his jaw, Inuyasha took another look around. They were currently in one of the garden courtyards. There was a large fountain in the center. Several students were sitting on the concrete ring around the pool below it, reading, socializing and sharing lunch. Other students were walking in groups around the many stone pathways that weaved through the carefully groomed landscaping. Everyone seemed in high spirits. If he hadn't seen the poor boy Kagome had severely beaten just hours before, Inuyasha wouldn't believe a thing she was telling him.

As if reading his mind, Kagome continued. "Not to say we are always fighting. Fighting can only occur under the supervision of a teacher or a member of the student government. This is important, so I need you to listen."

"I have been."

Her eyes narrowed. "I mean really listen." He casually gestured with his hand for her to continue. "Before a fight, the two sides agree on conditions and victory awards."

"Victory awards?"

"In order to encourage fights, each side must agree to a condition placed by the other side. For example, someone challenges you to a fight. You agree that if you win, they must do your homework for the next month. If they win, you have to do their share of cleaning duty for the next month. By accepting, you are bound to complete it if the other side wins. Failure to do so results in punishment from the student disciplinary council."

"Are you serious?" Inuyasha was having a hard time believing what he was hearing. None of it seemed possible. He had never been to an official school before, instead he had been home schooled by Myoga. Still, he knew how schools were supposed to work. This wasn't anything like what he was expecting. The old man had said that this wasn't going to be like a normal school, but this was extreme. "I can't believe it."

"Believe me or not, but that's how things are around here." Her expression softened as her brown eyes peered into him. "Since you're new, you'll be seen as an easy target. People are going to be swarming you, so be prepared."

Inuyasha frowned. "Do I have to fight?"

"Not always. You can turn down a fight if you don't like the terms of victory or you know the opponent can defeat you. We don't want the strong bullying the weak. If you are caught doing that, the consequences are quite severe." Kagome rested her hands against her hips. "I don't see why you wouldn't want to fight. It's how things work around here, not to mention people come here solely for that reason. You can achieve so much from fighting. Not only does your skill and technique increase, but you can get people to do homework, tests, do various chores for you."

"So you can ask for anything?"

"As long as they agree and there is a teacher or student government witness, yes. Also, most teachers won't allow a fight if someone skilled in fighting challenges someone much weaker unless there is a massive victory award for the underdog." Inuyasha only shook his head, still trying to process what she was telling him.

"Getting someone to clean and do your schoolwork for a couple weeks doesn't sound like much of a reward if losing means getting your ass kicked."

"Those were examples. I'm not saying that people don't fight for those reasons, but most of them are quite different in nature. For example, you could challenge a girl and win a date or kiss."

Inuyasha frowned. "That sounds like a _wonderful_ way to start a relationship."

She smiled. "I think you are underestimating the women here. Strength is greatly respected here. Besides the usual things, no woman wants to date someone weaker than them. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but you want a partner that you can rely on." She sighed. "There are a lot of reasons why it is like that, but you'll find out in time."

Inuyasha rubbed his chin as a thought struck him. "If you don't mind me asking, what was the reward for the guy if he won against you?"

She cleared her throat, looking away. He wondered why she was so embarrassed by the question. "And then there is the case of retaliation fights."

"Retaliation?"

"Right, say someone steals something from you or pushes you down a flight of stairs. Under the supervision of a teacher or student government member, you are able to declare right of vengeance. If someone calls a right of vengeance against you, you cannot refuse."

He frowned. "So why doesn't everyone just do that?"

"Because there is no reward for the victor. The supervisor is there just to make sure things don't get out of hand. Also, you must be wronged in order to invoke right of vengeance and the wronged action must be confirmed, so you can't just make something up. Also, there are cases where you don't have to be the one wronged in order to claim retaliation. So if a friend of yours was being bullied, with his permission, you can fight in his place." She smiled. "It's one of the balancing points in the school to keep the weak from being dominated by the strong."

"This is all so confusing," Inuyasha muttered, rubbing his temples.

She sighed. "It may seem that way for now, but you'll catch on to the basics quickly." She started walking again, leaving him behind. "If you don't, you'll be eaten alive."

Frowning, Inuyasha hurried off after her. "I thought you said there were things protecting the weak from the strong."

"Yes, but it's not a total protection. There is always someone around your skill level and they will be able to challenge you."

"I'm more worried about them than me," Inuyasha muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets. He wasn't worried about someone getting the best of him, rather, he was worried about getting in trouble for kicking the crap out of everyone weaker than him. He didn't know all the details, but Kagome had hinted that picking on those vastly weaker than you got you in hot water pretty quick. Still, as confusing and odd as everything sounded, he couldn't help but feel excited and interested. The more he learned, the more attractive the idea of going to school became. Several long minutes had passed before he realized that neither he nor Kagome had spoken. "You know, you never did tell me what that other guy would have won if he beat you."

There was a brief silence before she answered, pulling the hair from her eyes as a breeze rushed passed them. "My virginity."

"Huh?" Inuyasha said dumbly, not quite believing what he had just heard.

Her cheeks flushed a deep red as she looked down. "He would have won the right to take my virginity."

It took a second for Inuyasha to close his mouth after the shock. "And the teachers _allowed_ this deal to take place?"

"Of course!" she said quickly, regaining her composure. "As I said, so long as both sides agree—"

"Doing someone's homework for a few months is hardly a fair bargain for that price. I'd say you got ripped off."

To his surprise, Kagome sighed, shaking her head sadly. "I told you that the rewards have to be equal compared to skill of the fighters as well. He was able to ask for such a large reward because he had next to no chance of winning. As such, I was only able to ask for something small since there was little chance of me losing." To his surprise, she smiled. "It encourages the weak to challenge the strong. You will likely lose, yes, but the reward for that off chance of winning and the small punishment of losing makes it an attractive option."

Inuyasha let out a long breath, scratching at the back of his neck. "You weren't kidding when you could ask for anything."

She nodded. "As long as both sides agree to it, then anything is possible." Before he could say anything more, there was the sound of a distant bell. Eyes widening, she looked down at her watch. "That time already!" Smiling, she turned her attention back to Inuyasha. "I know this is a little sudden, but I'm going to have to cut your tour a little short. Don't worry, I showed you the important places." She was already starting to back away as she continued. "I would suggest heading back to the dorm and getting your class schedule and finding your classrooms before it gets too late. Sorry I couldn't give you a complete tour. Good luck!" she called out, giving him a wave before disappearing around a row of bushes.

"Uh… okay," Inuyasha said, suddenly feeling lost as he looked around the unfamiliar grounds. Sighing, he turned around and headed back to where he thought the dorms were. _Myoga you bastard, what kind of place did you send me too?_

Finding his room was easier than he thought it would be. Trying the handle, he found the door was locked. Frowning, he realized that in no point in time was he given a key. A bright slab beside the door caught his attention. Tilting his head, he bent lower to get a better look at it. It looked a lot like something he would see on TV rather than in real life. Looking around to make sure no one was watching, he lifted his left hand and cautiously placed it on the panel. There was a slight hum before the light blinked green. Before him, there was a sound of a lock shifting in place. "You're kidding," he said as he tried the door again. This time, it opened. Stepping inside, he gave the panel a suspicious look as he stepped inside. He didn't remember giving anyone so much as a fingerprint, let along his entire palm.

The room was surprisingly small for two people considering the extravagant décor of the other buildings on campus. It was as if the owners had spent all the allotted money on everything else in the school and had none left over for where the students lived. Just as Kaede had said, his bags were waiting on the small bed on the side that appeared to be empty. While his roommate was nowhere to be found, Inuyasha knew already that he was going to be quite the character. Large posters of women, both real and illustrated littered the wall. Few had more than a few scraps of clothes covering choice parts of the body. Even fewer bothered covering their exposed flesh. Two desks sat at the far end, side to side. The one he assumed was his was bare while the other appeared to be in use as a drawing area. A large white canvas took up most of the available space. A half-drawn woman stared up at him as he hovered over it. From the looks of it, she would be just as scantily clad as the other women on the wall. Peeling his eyes away from the illustration, he scanned the rest of the room. Several small drawers lay beneath his bed for his clothes. A small closet was built into the wall at the foot of his bed. Sliding the door open, he sighed at the dismal space it held. Closing the door, he once more looked around to realize that there was nothing else in the room. He sighed in resignation. Inuyasha liked having his own space. Sharing living space with a roommate was hard enough for him, but having to share a bathroom and showers with a whole floor of people really tested his patience.

There was a beep and click behind him. Turning, he found a surprised dark-haired man staring back at him. After the second of shock passed, the man smiled. "So you must be the new roommate I heard I was getting." Closing the door behind him, he brushed past Inuyasha to stand before his desk. "Sorry about the mess, but I've been living alone since my last roommate dropped out several months ago. They told me I was getting a new one yesterday so I've been cleaning…" He paused for a moment, giving Inuyasha a quick once-over. "My name is Miroku by the way."

"Inuyasha," he answered, taking Miroku's offered hand and giving it a quick shake. His eyes gravitated towards the decorated wall. "So do you…"

"Draw them? You bet!" Miroku answered proudly, puffing his chest out in pride. "Excellent quality no?"

"Err… yeah." Content aside, they _were_ skillfully drawn. "And the photos?"

"Taken and developed by me." He let out a long, weary sigh as he hung his head. "It's so difficult to find willing, attractive models though."

_I wonder why…_ Suddenly, he remembered back to his conversation with Kagome. "Let me guess, these are the women you've beaten," Inuyasha said, waving his hands over the wall of pictures.

Miroku grinned. "So you know about the reward system here. That's good to hear." Inuyasha continued to look over the wall. Now that he was actually paying attention, he realized that the vast majority of them were drawn and most of the real photos were different poses of a few different women. "Yeah," Miroku started as if he was picking up on Inuyasha's thoughts. "I'm more of an artist than a fighter. It's just so hard fighting women, let alone beautiful ones. I want to make art, not hurt them."

"Art?" Inuyasha thought it leaned closer to pornography than art, but then again, art _was_ in the eye of the beholder.

Miroku smiled, spreading his hands. "I know, it's not classy or anything, but this is what sells." His smile widened. "It actually sells really well. If any girl catches your eye, let me know. I'll give you a discount since we're roomies."

It took a second for Inuyasha to realize what Miroku was telling him. "You mean you—"

"All I need is a photo of the face and the pose you want. After a little imagination and some hard work, I can have something that looks just like the real thing."

"I bet you're a real fan with the ladies."

His smile faltered. "Unfortunately, no. There is an upside. I make decent money and I have a big following among the male students. Sure, I get the occasional pissed off boyfriend come to threaten and otherwise blow hot air at me, but none are dumb enough to actually invoke a retaliation fight. I have far too many customers for that. Hell, most of them _are_ customers or at least were at some point." He gave Inuyasha a pat on the shoulder. "So if you ever get in trouble, let me know. I've got connections with some pretty powerful people and a lot of them owe me several times over."

"Thanks, but I can take care of myself."

Miroku grinned. "Confidence and bolster from an E-class, I like that."

"E-class?"

Frowning, Miroku tilted his head slightly. "No one told you about the ranking system? I thought that's the first thing you learned." Inuyasha shook his head. "Oh, well," he gestured to the room around him. "Welcome to the E-class dorm room; economy size for those with room to improve."

"You mean everyone doesn't have a room like this?"

"Are you kidding? You get up in the A or B ranks and you practically live in your own house." He sighed. "But those of us unfortunate to be low in the rankings have to squeeze together in these humble quarters." Raising his head, he shook his fist towards an invisible enemy only he could see. "Damn the people who don't understand that strength isn't just physical skill. Do connections and networking mean nothing to them?"

Inuyasha wasn't sure what he was going on about, but the ranking system did interest him. _If I can increase in rank, I can get my own room – or at least a bigger one._ "So about this ranking system…"

"Ah, right," Miroku said, his train of thought suddenly snapping back to the original conversation topic. "The lowest is E, where we both currently reside. You get stuck here because you don't fight, like me, you suck at it, or you just transferred in." He held five fingers up. "There are five ranks; from lowest to highest, E, D, C, B, A. Original, huh?" He grinned. "Anyways, in the top ranks of B and A, there are sub ranks that come with their own benefits. I won't bother telling you what all the benefits are because it's nearly impossible to get up there now that you transferred in so late," he said with a wave of his hand. "But the sub ranks are Alpha and Beta in B-class and A, Double-A, and Triple-A for A-class. Challenging someone in the B or A rankings mean you can just about ask for anything. As a member of the E-class, if you challenge someone in the Double-A or Triple-A rankings, you can literally ask for anything in return for a win and they can't ask for anything in return."

Inuyasha gestured to the photos on the wall. "Is that what you did for them?"

"Are you kidding me! They are fellow E-rankers. I enjoy being among the living; thank you very much. I fell for a D-class girl my freshman year. I challenged her. For my win, I would get a date. If I lost, I couldn't draw her likeness for anyone. I was in the infirmary for three weeks, even with synth-gel treatment."

Inuyasha whistled. Synth-gel was a powerful medical treatment, and hugely expensive. He wasn't sure of the science behind it. Most of the villagers who talked about it swore up and down that it was magic. What he _was_ sure about was that it was some sort of synthetic cell-like gel that morphed itself into certain things by different electric and chemical signals. Break a bone? Set it and inject some synth-gel and in a few hours, you were good to go. Get a nasty cut? Smooth some synth-gel over it and watch the cut magically disappear. If what he saw on TV could be believed, it was scary what the stuff could do. "So this girl, did she stay D-class?"

"Hell no. At the end of the semester, she was a Beta in B; one of the few freshmen to get that high. Today, she's a Triple-A."

"Scary."

"Right? I was thoroughly destroyed. I only shiver to think about how powerful she is now." He nodded, crossing his arms. "So if you have any plans of getting up that high, I suggest you toss them now before you find yourself staring at an infirmary ceiling for a few weeks."

"Thanks, I'll try to remember that." He wasn't too concerned about people of any rank. Myoga was at a master level and Inuyasha could hold his own against him. Every day of his childhood under Myoga was one long training session. What threat could a bunch of rich kids possibly pose? Even without Miroku's warning, Inuyasha had no intention of picking any fights – even if there was the potential of his own room. Instead, he would focus on more important things; like Kagome for example. While it didn't _have_ to be her, it would be nice to get to know a couple girls and catch up on all the things guys his age were already experiencing. His eyes rested on Miroku, giving serious thought to what he was thinking about. _Well, maybe I shouldn't focus _entirely_ on that._ Perhaps he should give his studies a try. Most of what he knew Myoga had taught him and he knew already that he was severely disadvantaged in the academic department.

Miroku's hand tightened on Inuyasha's shoulder, giving him a firm grip of assurance before patting it gently. "Don't worry, stick with me and keep your head down and we'll both make it through this."

"Uh, right," Inuyasha said dubiously. Something told him that hanging out with Miroku was going to plaster a target on his head. Still, as quirky as Miroku was, he seemed like a decent enough guy. _I guess I'll find out in time._

**This is something of a pilot chapter for a new story. I hope to have a second chapter up fairly soon.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any characters associated with it. This story is rated for a mature audience.**

Inuyasha was lost. Finding his way around the massive school turned out to be easy. Following the teacher was another matter entirely. He knew going in that it wouldn't be easy to catch up. A lot of his fellow students had the best education money could buy while he received his 'bounty' of knowledge from an ancient mountain hermit. The amount of strings Myoga must have pulled to get Inuyasha into the school was mind boggling. He managed to catch a glimpse of the entrance exam – the one he magically didn't have to take. There were problems and concepts on it he had never even heard of before. The fact that the 'math' problems had more letters and words in the equations than numbers struck him as ridiculous and that wasn't including the ones where the answer to the equation was another equation. What was the point of doing all that work if you were going to end up with another question? Staring at the jumbled heap of words on the exam made him realize that short of a miracle, he would _never_ catch up to the class considering the relentless pacing the teachers pushed on. After finding himself immersed in school life, his desire to study quickly plummeted to nothing. He wasn't going to _completely_ give up, but he was definitely not going to give it his all like he had originally planned to.

This essentially left him with one thing left: girls – and there were plenty to capture his attention. Most of his dreaded math class was spent eyeing a fox demon a few rows in front of him. With sparkling jade eyes, lengthy orange-red hair, a petite body and a graceful swagger, Inuyasha's eyes weren't the only ones captivated by her presence. But he knew that she would forever be something to be gazed upon, not acted on. One of the major things Myoga had dilled into him was the dangers of demons and the opposite sex. The topic of female fox demons brought a lengthy sermon from the old man. They were especially promiscuous beings who rarely turned away a potential bedmate. A loyal relationship was simply impossible as they would lay with another man the moment you looked away. Even worse, with their impossibly gorgeous looks, a remorseful expression combined with a light sprinkle of tears would have their 'significant' other begging _her_ for forgiveness. Inuyasha felt pity for the lustful looks of the other men around her, wondering how many were caught in her inescapable web.

Miroku was turning into an indispensible resource when it came to girls. All that was needed was the class number and a basic description and the man would spit out a name, hobbies, clubs, grades; anything you would want to know. He would even give you the bust and waist sizes – provided you cough up a moderate information fee. How Miroku got his mystery was a carefully guarded secret, but Inuyasha was convinced that if the man put even a fraction of his effort into his school work and training as he did collecting information on the girls of the school, he would be in a much better position than he was now. Unfortunately, Miroku was also a liability. It hadn't even been a week and already the taint of his presence was surrounding Inuyasha. The problem with being the top resident girl-crazy-information guy was that they _knew_ who and what he did, thus the girls avoided him at all possible. Being his roommate and also in the same class, Inuyasha was spending a great deal of time around him. He had seen the looks the girls cast over on Miroku when his back was turned. Already the number of people who approached him to talk after introducing themselves had plummeted, especially among the female population. He noticed them giving him judging looks as well, as if he hung around Miroku because of similar interests. Even when Inuyasha tried talking to them, both males and females tended to spend as little time with him as possible. Yes, Miroku was… odd, but Inuyasha had gotten to know him a bit over the past several days and as long as you avoided the topic of girls, he was actually pretty normal. Inuyasha felt especially comfortable around Miroku as they both shared humbler backgrounds than the rest of the school. In fact, Inuyasha learned that the only reason why Miroku had picked up his questionable line of work was originally to pay the schools ridiculous tuition rather than enjoyment. Apparently, a craftily forged picture of a secret crush went for an easy hundred bucks. The semi-nude and nude ones went for well over that. It was actually quite sickening how much money people were willing to throw around for something so sketchy. Yet despite all the dirty looks thrown his way, Miroku remained nonchalant about his situation. When Inuyasha asked him about it, he simply shrugged and told him, 'They can belittle me all they want, but at the end of the day, they're all paying customers.'

At the end of the week, school life was beginning to lose its luster. Inuyasha was beginning to realize just how tedious school was going to be. Besides the fox demon Kala, there were a few other attractive girls who stood out from the others. No one was hideous looking, quite the opposite. But spend enough time surrounded by illustrious gems and they quickly lose their luster as the extraordinary becomes ordinary. Combine that with Kagome building up this picture of fights happening all over the place, yet Inuyasha had only seen one and it was pathetic. Granted, it _was_ between two E-class members. He got most of the information of the complex situation from Miroku. Through some clever manipulation of what Miroku called the 'relationship rules', the first guy, a burly Russian named Isai, had challenged Goro, a reedy Japanese fellow's girlfriend to a duel and won – breaking them up and forcing her to date him. In response, Goro invoked several more of the relationship rules to force Isai to fight him to void the win. Inuyasha found the whole situation ridiculous. It was clear that Aoi had feelings for Goro and felt nothing for her new boyfriend, but that didn't seem to matter in the grand scheme of things. Miroku tried to quickly explain things as they waited for the presiding teacher to go through the motions of making sure the reasons the fight was happening as well as the rewards for winning and losing were clearly documented. According to Miroku, the rules regarding relationships were in a special class, much like the retaliation ones. The founders of the school knew youths naturally sought to form relationships and wanting to encourage yet more fights, set up special rules for those in them. Only those who are in relationships are affected, so being single grants immunity. After explaining the situation, it suddenly made sense to Inuyasha as to why the women wanted strong men. In the case that they lost, their boyfriend could challenge the victor to void the win. Miroku had tried to explain to him all the rules involved, but Inuyasha was already overwhelmed with information. He could remember some, like it was explicitly forbidden to force someone to have sex, even if you won, though it sounded like there was a massive grey area with making out and feeling them up. Frowned upon? Yes. Forbidden? No. It was a risk everyone took entering a relationship.

Another rule was that after a month, the loser had the option to drop the relationship and become single, thus exempting them from the rules. Once single, they were free to start dating again at any time but they were instantly subject to the rules once more. To Inuyasha, the whole process seemed pointless. Why steal someone away if after a month they are just going to dump you? Well, apparently people here did find a point to it because the way Miroku talked about it, these fights happened fairly often. In fact, the rules regarding relationship were the most frequently updated by the people in charge. Nothing motivated someone to train harder than losing someone you loved to another person. There were many other rules regarding relationships: the length of time the loser had to wait before challenging someone again, conditions in which a relationship challenge could be issued, limitations on which ranks could fight which; on and on the rules went. Inuyasha was impressed that Miroku knew so many. It made his head spin just trying to imagine knowing the rules for relationships, regular fights _and_ retaliation fights all at the same time and keeping on top of your regular studies as well.

The actual fight was over quickly, but it was surprisingly brutal. Isai was a powerhouse of raw strength, but Goro knew what he was doing. Using his agility to his advantage, Goro always positioned himself in such a way to use Isai's own strength against him. On one knee, face bloody from his gushing nose and busted lip, Isai conceded defeat. Inuyasha still shivered in disgust when he remembered the sound of Isai's nose breaking against his opponent's knee. Victorious, Goro spat blood from his busted lip where the Russian had managed to land a blow before turning his attention to his jubilant love.

That fight had happened two days ago. Since then, everything had been quiet. With the last class of the day over, Inuyasha and Miroku were walking down the hall. Inuyasha was actually looking forward to the evening. Tomorrow was the one free day where classes weren't in session so Miroku had decided to give him a tour of the large entertainment venues outside of the main school area.

"I was thinking we could get something to eat first," Miroku said, his bag slung over his shoulder to rest against his back. "The problem is choices. There is a restaurant of just about every major culture, so what do you feel like?"

Inuyasha didn't have to think too hard before making a decision. "Any good Ramen places?"

"Ramen?" Miroku frowned in thought. "I think a few places may sell it but I'm sure you won't find a specialty place. These rich folk love expensive food." He patted Inuyasha on the shoulder as they walked. "You know, just because I said I would pay doesn't mean you have to pick something cheap. I just completed a couple jobs so money isn't an issue at the moment."

"I'll pay you back, I promise," Inuyasha said. He didn't like the idea of being in Miroku's debt, _anyone's _debt for that matter, but Myoga's promised allowance hadn't arrived yet. _The bastard isn't sending any on purpose._ Knowing the old man, there was some senseless reasoning behind it. Inuyasha knew his teacher had a sizable hoard of cash built up from his youth, so it wasn't like he was struggling to come up with the money. It was starting to make Inuyasha uncomfortable. Living on campus wasn't cheap. All the venders knew the students had money and therefore charged ridiculous prices for everything. All the money Myoga had given him had dried up by the end of the first week, and all Inuyasha had been buying was food.

Miroku waved the offer away. "Don't even bother. Think of this as repayment for the company. You have no idea how nice it is to have someone talk to you."

"Yeah, don't mention it," Inuyasha said, looking away. They weren't the only ones in the hall. Classes had just let out so it was pretty busy. While Miroku seemed oblivious to it, the sideways glares of their schoolmates as they passed were definitely noticeable. Inuyasha had given up on making friends. Sure, at the beginning, _everyone_ wanted to talk to him and it surprised him to have so many people trying to buddy up with him. Once it became obvious that he was hanging around with Miroku however… No, it wasn't even Miroku. It was _him._ They were being friendly with him in case he turned out to be some amazing fighter. When it became apparent that he wasn't going to be challenging anyone big, they quickly dismissed him. No one wanted to be friends with someone they couldn't use. Maybe that's why he had stuck around with Miroku for so long. Sure, he was weird, but at the same time, he was honestly happy just to have someone to talk to. Besides, he wasn't girl crazy _all_ the time. He had shown Inuyasha his artwork he used to make before switching to his less reputable craft. It was fantastic. How a man of his talent ended up here instead of art school was a mystery. Whenever Inuyasha asked, Miroku would simply shrug and respond, "Life circumstances led me here. I'm here now so I make the best of what I can."

"Something wrong?" Miroku asked, giving him a sideways glance. Inuyasha realized he had gotten caught up with eyeing their surroundings that he hadn't been paying attention.

"No, nothing's wrong," he answered, giving Miroku a forced smile. While he said everything was fine, something didn't sit right with him. The passing glimpses and hushed whispers of others bothered him more than he let on. Myoga had taught him a great deal about reading the atmosphere of an area. It felt like the hair on the back of his neck was just waiting to stand up. Smile fading, Inuyasha's expression turned serious as they approached one of the stairways. If something was going to happen… Sure enough, as soon as they turned to exit down the stairs, Miroku turned, and preoccupied with his conversation with Inuyasha, ran headfirst into a woman. At the leisurely pace they had been walking, there was no way the impact could do as much damage as it did. To the untrained eye, it appeared that Miroku had slammed into the dark haired woman and toppled her over, him going down with her to land face-first into her breasts. Inuyasha on the other hand, saw a completely different story. When Miroku ran into her, she expertly fell back, her foot gently nudging his pivot foot, throwing him off balance. From there, a simple tug of his shirt and he was on his way down with her. Skilled as it was, Inuyasha doubted Miroku even realized he had been set up.

"Shit, sorry," Miroku said, quickly scrambling to his feet. In his haste, his hand quickly grazed the woman's breast on his way up. Offering his hand to the fallen woman, he gave an apologetic smile. "I wasn't paying—" He froze as his breath caught in his throat, face going pale as his eyes met the enraged woman's. "Sango," he whimpered softly, his smile gone.

Slowly picking herself up, Sango brushed her skirt and blouse off with an angry huff. Eyes flashing in anger she straightened before the two. "Miroku," she answered coldly. Unconsciously, Inuyasha slipped a foot back to better position himself for an attack. His gaze was everywhere _but_ Miroku and Sango, though it wasn't obvious. Judging by the people's expressions around them, this had hardly been an accident. No, someone had set a trap and they had blindly fallen in. He tried to remember Myoga's advice for engaging multiple people. _"Don't,"_ his master's voice echoed. _"You'll get your ass kicked."_ _Thanks for the help Myoga,_ Inuyasha thought bitterly, preparing himself for the hopeless battle that was inching steadily closer. He wasn't sure how he ranked compared to everyone else, but he knew one thing for certain, if they thought numbers were going to make him an easy target, they were sadly mistaken. As prepared as he could be in this situation, Inuyasha focused back on the two.

"I'm sorry Sango, I wasn't paying attention." He gestured quickly between him and Inuyasha. "We were just on our way out to go get something to eat so if you don't mind…" Voice trailing off as he rubbed his hands together anxiously, Miroku stepped cautiously to the side to make his escape around the furious woman. She smoothly slid to block him, causing him to leap back as if the floor had suddenly caught fire.

Hands on her hips, Sango gave him a smirk. "You weren't paying attention? Is that the excuse you use for feeling up women these days?" Several people in the crowd chuckled. Inuyasha noticed that more people were gathering to see what was happening. _This is bad._ Before, Inuyasha had several escape routes in mind. A few quick strikes to a select surprised individuals and he would have an opening. Now, with so many people clogging up the hall, escape wasn't likely.

"No, no, no," Miroku answered quickly, his head down. "I must assure you this is all just a misunderstanding."

"'A misunderstanding?'" she said mockingly. "Yes, there must _be_ a misunderstanding here. See, I seem to remember a certain… _arrangement_, but apparently the impact has made my memory a little fuzzy." She rubbed her forehead as she pretending to be in deep thought. "Hmm, I can't seem to remember. Perhaps you can recall what it was for me?"

"T-that I wouldn't bother you anymore," Miroku answered softly, looking away.

"Yes, that's it! But I feel that wasn't all to it."

"I wouldn't draw you, touch you, speak to you—"

"Yes! That's it!" Sango cried out as if having an epiphany. Her expression darkened. "And I believe you just broke two of those." Miroku visibly tensed.

"Now wait just a moment," Inuyasha said, unable to remain neutral as the only person he could remotely consider a friend was verbally beat on. "I believe you are being a little overdramatic here. It was clearly an accident."

Sango gave him a once-over, as if noticing him for the first time. "This is none of your business." She turned her attention back to Miroku before having second thoughts. Her attention once more focused on Inuyasha she pointed a finger at him. "And if you know what's good for you, you'll stop hanging out with him. He has a habit of bringing misfortune to those that willingly associate with him."

Miroku pressed the back of his hand against Inuyasha's chest, stopping him from responding. "Thanks," he whispered, "but I go this." Straightening, he straightened. "I apologize for my mistake and will do my best to ensure it doesn't happen again. I beg your forgiveness and ask that you allow me and my friend to continue on our way." He gave a bow at the end of his lengthy apology.

She seemed to think it over, running a finger over her lips. "Since this is a breach of a fight contract, the correct thing to do is report it to the student discipline committee."

Miroku's head shot up. "No please! Anything but that!" he cried out in panic. He stopped just short of grabbing her. From the brief flash of anger in Sango's eyes, Inuyasha assumed that Miroku had stopped short of making a fatal mistake.

A thin smile formed on Sango's lips. "Anything eh? I suppose I can think of something…" Cradling her elbow in her other hand, she gently tapped a finger against her lip in thought. With a snap of her finger, her smile widened. "I've got it! I'll keep quiet if you agree to challenge me."

"Actually, reporting this to the student discipline committee might not be such a bad thing…" Miroku said, quickly reversing his position.

"I would think hard on this situation," Sango said darkly. "I could simply declare Retaliation _and_ report it to the committee. Both are perfectly in my right to do so. You should be thankful I'm even giving you this chance." Her fists tightened. "I'll make you regret everything you've done to Kotone," she muttered.

"K-Kotone? What does she—?" Miroku looked past Sango, his gaze settling on a shy looking woman who was hiding behind… _Kagome?_ Inuyasha thought, surprised to see her here. He hadn't seen her since the first day of school. _No,_ he thought, giving the woman a second look. It wasn't Kagome now that he had a better look. She was taller with more defined curves, not to mention she radiated a more mature aura than Kagome had. Her icy glare was locked on Miroku. He could feel they held every bit of hatred as Sango. "Oh, _oh no,_" Miroku said weakly, bringing Inuyasha's attention back to the conversation.

"Oh yes," Sango said, cracking her knuckles. "Now that you understand the situation… I believe you have a decision to make."

Throat tightening, Miroku clenched his fists, his eyes moving from Sango to Kotone to back to Sango. Licking his lips, he took a deep breath. "Fine. Sango, I challenge you to a fight of my choosing.

The smile on Sango's face was one of pure joy. "Wonderful! Shall we go get a teacher?" All Miroku could answer with was a moan as he was dragged off in the crowd as they all rushed to follow Sango down the stairs. Within minutes, Inuyasha found himself alone, suddenly weary as he was freed from the tension of an impending fight.

"What the hell?" he said aloud, starting off to follow the group down the stairs. He wasn't sure if he was more relieved or disappointed that things didn't end up in a fight. Miroku on the other hand…

Miroku looked like a doomed man awaiting his fate. Inuyasha had managed to wiggle past most of the large group that had surrounded the two, watching as his – friend – faced his own personal horror story. Luckily, the group was fairly close and Inuyasha could get in close enough to talk to Miroku.

"Hey," he said, coming up behind Miroku. His roommate jumped at his voice.

"Oh, hey Inuyasha," Miroku said in a shaky voice. The poor guy was terrified. He looked like he was about to pass out from fright.

"What's going on?"

"You remember that story I told you, the one with me ending up near death?"

"Yeah," Inuyasha said, getting an idea where this story was heading. "That's her?" he asked, looking over across the courtyard to where Sango stood. She was talking to Kotone and the Kagome-who-wasn't-Kagome. From the angry glances she cast over her shoulder towards Miroku, she looked determined to finish what she started. "Jesus, what the hell did you do?"

"Nothing!" Inuyasha gave him a dubious look. "Well, okay, _almost_ nothing. So I made some drawings of her, big deal! I never sold them to anyone!" Inuyasha held his gaze. "What? I didn't! Why would I do that? I told you before I liked her." His voice lowered. "They weren't even the trashy kind I make now." He looked hurt as he retreated inward to reminisce on old memories.

"That doesn't explain her obvious passionate love for you."

"For one thing, she never even _saw_ my drawings. She just assumed they were like my others."

"That's reasonable I guess."

Miroku gave him an angry glare. "Whose side are you on?"

"I'm just saying it's a reasonable assumption. How many people have seen your other works?"

He looked down. "Just you and my previous roommate."

"See? She had no reason to believe they weren't like your current works."

"Still…"

"So, she got pissed just because she thought you had some inappropriate fake pictures of her?"

"I may have… overstepped my bounds," he continued with some hesitation. Inuyasha only stared, waiting for him to continue. "Okay, I _really_ overstepped my bounds. When I asked her out, I may have inadvertently grabbed her ass." The only thing Inuyasha could do was cover his face with his palm, shaking his head. "Yeah, I know. I couldn't help it! I was nervous and it just happened! It was like I couldn't control myself."

Inuyasha sighed, lowering his hand. "Okay well that explains Sango's hatred, but what about Kotone? How is she involved in all this?"

"Well, she's attractive." Inuyasha couldn't argue with that, but most girls here were attractive. Kotone had the quiet, vulnerable look going for her which would set her apart from most other girls if you were into that sort of thing. Her black hair stopped at the neck. It looked layered too, but it was difficult to see from this range. From earlier, he remembered her having brown eyes. Other than that, she looked frail. That's what interested Inuyasha the most. Why was someone like her here? It was hard to imagine someone like her fighting when she looked ready to snap in half in a strong breeze. "Her innocent act causes a lot of the guys to fall for her. Thus, she's a common request."

"Great, so this is a business feud."

Miroku nodded sadly. "I deal with angry boyfriends and girlfriends all the time. I rarely get challenged though." He let out a dreary sigh. "No one will stand up for me now though, not against someone who's in the Triple-A rank."

"Wait, innocent act?" Inuyasha asked, the words sinking in.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. Kotone's a complete slut. Not many people know, or even suspect." He puffed his chest out proudly. "But you can't fool me. My information network never lies."

"And look what good it did you," Inuyasha said, gesturing towards the angry women across from them. "So you made some pictures of her? Besides the obvious, what's wrong with that? No one's bothered you before and she's not the first."

"Ah, but this one was quite different. I didn't fake them."

"You're joking."

"I wish I was. Tuition bills were due and a guy was offering a _lot_ of money to break her up with her boyfriend. He wasn't strong enough to challenge the boyfriend, so he decided to take a more… cautious approach. Honestly? I was doing her boyfriend a favor. What I caught her doing…" Miroku shook his head. "Anyways, the boyfriend obviously wasn't happy with what his girlfriend was doing behind his back and ended it. This was all handled behind closed doors of course, so no one knows the real reason why they split. Everyone still imagines Kotone as the innocent little angel that was dumped by a violent psychopath."

Inuyasha thought he felt a connection in the story. "Let me guess who the guy who wanted to separate the two…"

Miroku smiled sadly. "My old roommate." Inuyasha thought so. It felt nice having guessed the connection. "He quit after sustaining serious injuries in a fight with Kotone's ex. They say he'll walk with a limp forever. As for the boyfriend, he was expelled. So, basically no one is left besides Kotone herself who knows the truth – well, except all the guys she sleeps with, but there is no way in hell they'll tell anyone."

"So let me get this straight, you're about to get your ass kicked over an old grudge you had already paid for and for what you did to a woman who clearly deserved it?"

Miroku shrugged. "Pretty much."

Inuyasha tightened his fists. "This isn't right."

"You're preaching to the choir here." He looked over at Sango. "But she has me cornered. It's get my ass kicked around here a bit, or go before the student discipline committee and I'll pick getting my ass kicked thank you."

"What is this discipline committee I hear about? What exactly do they do?"

"I have no fucking idea, and that's what scares the shit out of me. Everyone who has dealt with them before refuses to say anything about it. Whatever they did, it scared the shit out of them."

"Ah! A teachers here!" someone from the crowd called out. A path parted through the group, allowing the teacher to step inside. Inuyasha recognized him as Michael-sensei, an American who taught freshmen science. He yawned as he looked at the two fighters. His gaze settled on Miroku.

"Fighting a Triple-A rank eh? Someone has a death wish." A wave of laughter rippled through the crowd. "Ah well, that's good. This fight won't last too long then. Come on then, let's hear conditions."

Sango stepped away from the wall of people, pointing a gloved finger towards her challenger. "If I win, Miroku has to complete a school week wearing nothing. He isn't allowed to cover himself with anything and has to walk around with 'pervert' painted on his forehead and back."

"Oy, oy," Michael said, rubbing the back of his neck as a giggle ran through the girls in the crowd. "You can't ask for that, not at your rank."

Sango slammed her fists against her hips. "This is also punishment. He broke my previous win conditions."

The teacher's eyebrows rose. "Is this true?" he asked, looking over at Miroku. Body tense, Miroku only nodded. "Well… I guess I'll allow it, but I'm going to note it in the report, so don't even think of trying to double up on him by taking it before the discipline committee."

"No worries sensei, they couldn't hold a candle to what I'm about to do to him." This got cheers from the women in the crowds. To Inuyasha, things were sounding a lot like a mass murder that was being publicly executed.

"And you?" the teacher asked, looking to Miroku. "What are you asking for?"

Miroku thought for a moment. "She has to pose for pictures and all rewards from the old fight are void."

The teacher waited for a moment before realizing that was all Miroku was going to ask for. Sighing, he shook his head. "I can't let you fight with just that."

"What does it matter? I'm going to lose anyways."

"Still, it will look bad if I authorize a fight with only those rewards for you."

Miroku sighed. "Fine." He straightened confidently. "Fine, if I win, she has to have sex with me."

"Big surprise there," a girl mumbled beside Inuyasha.

"I would ask for her virginity, but that was taken off the table since the end of freshmen year," Miroku said, proud that he got a zinger off of his own. Several snickers from the males in the audience meant that Miroku wasn't _totally_ without fans. Sango's face was pure red, though Inuyasha doubted it was in embarrassment. She looked ready to kill.

"Why don't we save the mudslinging until the fight? Now, what else?"

"That's not even enough?" Miroku said, surprised.

"Are you kidding kid? You're about to get your ass beat and balls ground to dust. I'm not going to let you die for a quick lay in the sack and an apology."

"This guys a teacher?" Inuyasha whispered to a student beside him.

"Yeah, awesome isn't he?" came the reply. Awesome wasn't the way he would describe him…

"Uh… she has to have sex with me anytime I want for the rest of the time we are in school?"

"Good enough," Michael said, waving his hand, seemingly uninterested. "Any special fight considerations?"

"None here," Sango said firmly, her eyes locked on Miroku.

"No," Miroku answered.

"Very well." He took a deep breath. "'I'm Michael, here to supervise the fight between Miroku and Sango. They both have shit they want from the other person… yady yady yady. Try not to kill each other. Fight.'"

The crowd had moved away, giving the two more room to move around. Inuyasha knew in the first five seconds just how badly Miroku was going to lose. Red skirt fluttering as she ran, Sango quickly closed the gap separating them. Miroku had barely managed to get his guard up when she was atop him. Not that his feeble defense mattered. She was like a cat playing with a ball of yarn. Her fists easily slid past his guard, hitting vital points on his face, chest and sides. In thirty seconds, Miroku was a bloody mess. Blood gushed from his broken nose; there were cuts on his face and arms and one of his eyes was already starting to swell. From the way he stood slumped forward, it was obvious several of his ribs were broken, not to mention his arm bones were probably fractured. How he was still standing was a testament to his willpower. Sango on the other hand was panting and sweating, but otherwise in perfect shape. It looked like she had been busy working out rather than fighting. In her eyes, this probably _was_ nothing more than a workout.

Inuyasha glanced over at the teacher who yawned again. It looked like he wasn't even paying attention to the fight. At the sudden gasp from the crowd, Inuyasha turned to find Sango straddling Miroku, pounding her fists into his face. Gritting his teeth, his eyes shot back to the teacher who was focused on his nails. _Shit, she's killing him! He has to end it sometime, right? Right!_ Miroku was barely reacting to the hail of punches that rained down upon him. _This is madness! _Between Sango's brutal treatment and the teacher's disinterest in the entire affair, no one seemed to care about what was happening. Inuyasha clenched his fists as the rage. The last thing he wanted was to get involved, but there was no way he was going to sit back and watch the only honest man around him die.

"Stop!" he shouted. Sango's hand froze in midair, ready to slam down on her unconscious opponent. Instantly, Inuyasha found himself alone as everyone around him got as far as they could.

"Excuse me?" Sango said, not quite believing what she heard.

"I said stop," Inuyasha repeated, glancing over at Miroku. "It's obvious who won here. He needs medical treatment."

Pushing down on his chest, Sango lifted herself off the beaten man. "Sensei, I think I'm finished with him."

"Err, right," he said, suddenly interested in the fight again. "Sango is the victor and all that." He turned to a few of the boys beside him. "You three, go take him to the infirmary." The three rushed off to carefully pick the injured man up and quickly carried him towards the main school building.

"You've got guts interrupting a fight," Sango said, her attention fully on Inuyasha.

_Hmm… how do Miroku do this? _"'Sango, I challenge you to a fight of my choosing,'" Inuyasha said, repeating what Miroku has said earlier.

She looked flabbergasted. "Are you _serious?_"

Inuyasha froze, not sure if he did it right or not. "Uh… yes?"

Sango only shook her head. "You were right to hang out with that looser if you're that dumb. Very well, I accept." She looked over her shoulder. "That's alright with you too sensei?" He waved his hand for her to continue. Sango straightened, giving Inuyasha a smile. "Fine, if I win, you get the same punishment as your friend – but only for a day," she corrected quickly as Michael opened his mouth to protest. After a moment of thought, the teacher closed his mouth and nodded his approval.

"Okay, but in return, if I win, both of Miroku's fights are void."

"Are you two _trying_ to get me in trouble? There's no way I can authorize a fight like that. Christ, it's not even a reward for yourself," Michael complained, crossing his arms.

Inuyasha shifted nervously, feeling the weight of everyone's eyes on him. _Damn it! What the fuck do I say? _The only thing he could think of was what Miroku had said, but he didn't share the same feelings as him. Sure, Sango was attractive, but he didn't want his first time being with someone who hated him. It would be like raping someone. Just the thought sent shivers of disgust through him. "And uh… you have to pose for Miroku." _Didn't Miroku like this girl?_ "And go on a date with him."

"You still haven't said anything for yourself," Michael said in a condescending tone. Several people snickered around him.

"Fine, you have to go on a date with both Miroku and I. Happy?" he asked, shooting a glare over at the teacher. Sango looked surprised, as did a lot of other people in the audience. Inuyasha was surprised to see the teacher giving him a smirk.

"I didn't think the new guy swung that way."

"Huh wha—" _Oh shit,_ he thought, suddenly realizing his error. "Uh, no, not like tha—"

"I accept," Sango said quickly, interrupting him. "Not that it matters anyway since I'm going to win."

"It still seems a little unbalanced."

Inuyasha looked down at the ground, shaking his head slowly. _I should have just stayed quiet._ _How the fuck did my sexuality get pulled into this?_ _Can I take things back? No, she already agreed to it. Damn it. Maybe I can clarify that it was a separate date. Why do I even _need_ to clarify? It's not like I asked for her to be in a threesome or anything._ Michaels snapping caught Inuyasha's attention.

"I don't have all day. You need to name something else."

"Uh…" Suddenly, the answer came to him. _She's Triple-A right?_ "You have to protect us for the rest of the school year."

"Huh?"

"You know, fight to protect us."

She looked at him in disgust. "Why the hell would I do that?"

Inuyasha shrugged, giving her a small smirk. "I thought it didn't matter what I asked – unless you're not confident that you'll win."

She glared at him. "I accept," she spat.

"Finally," Michael said with a sigh. "Any special fight considerations?"

"None," Sango answered quickly.

"I have one." For a second, Inuyasha thought Michael muttered a curse or two. "I don't actually fight girls…"

"Then why the fuck did you challenge me?" Sango exploded.

Inuyasha stuck two fingers out before him confidently. "Two minutes. If I'm still standing in two minutes, I win." He smiled. "It shouldn't be that difficult for you considering you had Miroku on the ground in thirty seconds. He was a fellow rank E member, so two minutes should be more than enough."

The teacher looked over at Sango. "This is up to you. I'll authorize it if you accept."

Sango thought it over. "A time limit. Sounds interesting. I accept." She grinned. "Afraid no one is going to stop me for you?"

Inuyasha returned her grin. "Something like that."

With everything out of the way, Michael began his announcement that the fight was going to begin. Judging by how it was nearly identical to what he said before Miroku started fighting, all teachers probably had to announce it. As the teacher spoke, Inuyasha concentrated his breathing. Seeing Sango fight once was all he needed to know about her style. She was pure speed and power, with little technique. Still, she was a formidable force, even for him. Her speed was the true threat. From what he had seen, it exceeded even Myoga's. He was going to get hit and he couldn't afford to get hit, not with the power she was putting into her punches. One hit would stagger him long enough for her to get another in, and another. Pretty soon, he would be joining Miroku in the infirmary. If there was anything working for him, it was that she got close, meaning he didn't have to worry about kicks. Lucky too considering how frightening her punches were. Dodging was out of the question. He was too slow for that. Blocking would only get him forty seconds, maybe a minute if he was lucky. After that, his arms would be too battered and numb to do anything. There was always his father's defensive circle, but he didn't want to hurt her. Besides, it took forever to set up – and that was in controlled conditions. In this heightened state of battle, it would take forever to calm his mind enough to enter it.

_Which leaves _that_,_ Inuyasha thought, focusing his attention on Sango. _I'll have to time it perfectly._ Once activated, he would have exactly two minutes before passing out. Too soon and he would fall before the time elapsed. Too late and Sango would be on him. His hand moved to his pocket, his grin widening as the teacher moved to the end of his required announcement. Inuyasha felt his heart racing in excitement. He had never felt this way training with Myoga. It was exhilarating, an adrenaline rush like he had never felt before. Not forty feet away from him was someone willing and able to beat the living crap out of him and yet he could do nothing but smile. _I have a three, maybe four second window._ He resisted the urge to pull the metal container from his pocket in fear that it would ruin the element of surprise. Besides, the challenge made things interesting.

"'Try not to kill one another. Fight.'" The moment the word left his mouth, Sango was charging at him. Things seemed to move in heartbeats. _Thump-thump._ The case was out, open and in his hand. _Thump-thump._ He pulled a pill from the neat, organized rows as he snapped the case close, his hand traveling to his mouth. _Thump-thump._ The pill in his mouth, he bit down, the contents instantly vaporizing in his mouth. _Thump-thump._ Twisting to his right, he managed to block Sango's first punch. Though just a graze, it still caused him to stumble back. She seemed surprised that her fist hit didn't connect. Already, Inuyasha could feel his body tingle, his vision blurring as the world rocked from side-to-side. Still smiling, he watched as the figure of Sango recovered to attack again. He managed one last conscious thought as the swirling vision narrowed. _I win._

**Let me know how I'm doing! I use reviews to gauge how well my stories are liked. For everyone who has written a review, thanks! I appreciate the support!**

**Edit 1: Someone brought it to my attention that I was using the name Aoi instead of Kotone. I corrected this. (Thank you) Also mentioned that Sango's skirt is red, which is somewhat important in later chapters.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any characters associated with it. This story is rated for a mature audience.**

**I just thought I would make a couple things clear. One, Inuyasha is a hanyou. I never really made that clear in the first two chapters. Two, this doesn't take place in modern times. I would put it maybe 25 or 30 years in the future.**

Furious, Sango stormed away from the stunned crowd, Kotone and Kikyo fast on her heels. She felt humiliated. The bastard had not only managed to trick her, but he made a fool out of her as well. In her mind, she hadn't lost. _It was that damn time limit…_ She never should have agreed to it. The bastard never even attempted to strike back. Either he was extremely skilled or he was damn lucky. Whichever it was, it wasn't over between them. She would make sure of that. Next time, she would make sure to select a teacher who wouldn't allow such cheap tricks.

"Sango! Hey Sango wait!" Kikyo called, finally grabbing onto her arm to pull her to a stop.

"What!" Sango snapped, spinning around to face the two surprised women.

"What happened?" she asked, giving her a concerned look as she released her arm.

"Did you go easy on him?" Kotone added. She quickly took a step back from Sango's scowl.

Sango moved her eyes to Kikyo, feeling her anger slowly evaporate under her cool gaze. She hated how similar she was to her cousin. Kagome always had this calming presence that radiated from her, a trait that Kikyo shared. No matter how frustrated she was about something, she always calmed down in the presence of the two. "I don't know." She looked down at her gloved hands, the black leather red from blood from both Miroku and Inuyasha. "I hit him, but at the same time, I missed." She looked back up at Kikyo. "Does that even make any sense?"

The corners of her mouth tugged upwards in a smile. "No, not really."

Sango let out an exhausted sigh as she ran her wrist over her forehead, wiping away the sweat that had gathered there. "I never thought I'd lose." _Thank God he didn't ask for something more… intimate._ Just the thought made her queasy. Luckily, it didn't appear that he was too interested in her. Perhaps it was because she was a woman. He seemed more concerned with making sure Miroku was happy. _Ugh, Miroku…_ Thinking of him made her wish that Inuyasha was the one interested in her. Miroku was perverted scum – among the worst the male gender had ever spawned into its ranks. She had seen his 'artwork' before. She had been lucky enough to get immunity from his devious clutches freshmen year. A lot of other women weren't. That was all gone now though thanks to Inuyasha. After putting so much effort into protecting herself, the bastard had sent it all tumbling in two minutes. Not only was he free to draw her for his perverted clients, but he would have something to hold over her. She had seen the type of photos he took of the women he beat. She wasn't looking forward to her turn under the lens. Beyond that, having to actually protect him from what he rightfully deserved…

"Where are you going?" Kikyo asked as Sango marched off towards the dorms.

Sango didn't slow down. She was determined to set things straight, no matter the cost. "To talk to Kagome."

**Three and a half minutes ago**

Sango was momentarily confused by Inuyasha's actions. Most people took the few seconds it took for her to get to them to prepare for the coming onslaught. He on the other hand left himself wide open, instead pulling a silver box from his clothes. A tingling sensation ran through her body as she saw him remove a small pill from the container. Her instincts were telling her she needed to stop him, even though she knew it was far too late for that. The pill disappeared into his mouth a second before she was in range. He read her attack and stepped back, twisting his body just enough to allow him to casually block her strike. Not expecting to be read so easily, she allowed him to take a few steps back, opening the distance between the two. _Whatever he's doing, I won't give him time to do it._ Pulling her fists up in a guard position, she launched herself forward. Two steps in, she noticed that Inuyasha's movements were… odd. He had a glazed look in his eyes as he lifted his hands up in a sloppy guard. _This will be even easier than Miroku._ Miroku at least had a proper guard.

The metal case clattered to the ground as Sango drove her right fist towards her opponents face. As he moved to intercept, she quickly yanked it back while driving her left in from the side. Her fist connected… then nothing. The sudden introduction of air and the force of her punch caused her to twist too far and stumble off balance. Eyes wide, she turned to find his stupid grinning face staring at her. Pulling into a fighting stance, she pushed forward once more. This time, she opened with a left. His guard was careless and she had every intention to make use of the holes he had left open for her. She didn't bother with a fake this time, driving full force with her left. It connected against his right cheek for a brief moment, but once again, she was hitting air as he stumbled backwards. There were several cheers from the crowd. From their viewpoint, Inuyasha was being knocked around from the force of her punches. Sango knew better. He hadn't taken any damage. Not yet anyhow.

The longer the fight went on, the more frustrated she got. She kept hitting him, but every time she did, he never took any damage. Even worse, she constantly had to chase after him. With every blow she landed, he would stumble out of range, making it impossible for her to follow up with anything else. Crying out in rage, she dove at him again, only for him to spin out of range when she hit him. He wasn't _completely_ unharmed. His face was cut from the few hits she managed to land and his chest and sides _had_ to be hurting him. She had noticed that he had a more difficult time redirecting her blows when they were to his body. Unfortunately, that meant it would take a lot more to bring him down. Inuyasha had a well-built body. Bringing him down in two minutes was going to be tough if she could only hit his torso.

Then, he started laughing. At first, it was giggles. Each near miss she threw caused a schoolgirl-like giggle as he spun and stumbled away. The more effort she threw into her strikes, the more laugher it caused. A wide smile on his face, he stumbled right and left. She could see the damage was beginning to add up. He swayed from side to side, unable to stand straight. Clenching her fists, she took a deep breath as she prepared herself for the finishing blows that would end this farce of a fight. Plunging herself towards him, her right fist shot out – and in a flurry of motion, she felt a sharp sting against the side of her face. Blinking in surprise, she froze, fist outstretched before her. Inuyasha was laughing happily behind her. _How did he-?_ It took a second for her to realize that he had slapped her. _Slapped _her! It hadn't even been a forceful one, just a playful tap. That opening she had been aiming for had snapped shut like the jaws of a waiting alligator. From the light taps she had felt against her arm, he could have easily snapped her arm as well. Spinning, she quickly pulled back her fist into a guard. _What's he playing at?_ He didn't seem to be paying her much attention as he staggered back and forth, slowly turning to face her again. Cautiously this time, she closed the distance. Snapping her left forward, satisfaction shot threw her as it connected… and quickly vanished, just like her target. Head back from the impact, Inuyasha didn't stumble back from the impact, instead going _forward_, right under her guard, sliding around behind her. At the same moment, he slapped a hand against her ass as he retreated, just escaping the back fist that chased after him.

Growling in rage, she gave chase. Tired of his games, she managed to grab ahold his shirt. Cocking her arm back, she gathered all the strength she could muster. _Let's see you escape this. _Just as she was about to drive her fist down into his nose, his eyes rolled up and she suddenly found herself holding over two hundred pounds of dead weight. As he hit the pavement, she felt a strong grip on her fist, holding it back. Howling in rage, she struggled to bring it down on the unconscious man at her feet. "Let go!" she screamed, fighting with all her might. The iron grip didn't release her. She was exhausted after two fights, but she refused to let this fight end without landing a solid hit.

"Sango! Sango stop!" she heard Michael yell, struggling to hold her back. "It's been two minutes. The fights over."

"Bullshit!" she yelled, still fighting against his grip as he pulled her away from the unconscious Inuyasha. She tried to land a kick or two against the still form, but she was already out of range. "God damn it! Let me go!"

"Sango! Enough!" he bellowed. She froze, the blinding rage giving way to reason. The grip on her loosened as she calmed down. "Inuyasha was still standing at the end of two minutes. The fights over. Inuyasha is the winner."

"He… won?" she whispered in disbelief, her mouth not use to the foreign words. She suddenly felt her strength leave her, causing her to fall to her knees, staring blankly before her. She could hear the whispers of the crowd around her, but couldn't make out what they were saying. "Wait," she said, suddenly looking around for the metal case Inuyasha had dropped at the beginning of the fight. "What are these?" she said, diving for the case. She was a second late as Michael quickly snatched it from the ground. Opening it, he carefully examined the contents. "Those are drugs right?" Sango said, climbing to her feet. "He was cheating!" she cried out, pointing an accusatory finger at her downed opponent.

Snapping open one of the pills, Michael licked the tip of his finger and dipped it in the powder inside before sticking it in his mouth. After slapping his lips several times, a smile spread across his face. "I thought something was familiar about his style." He shook the contents of the pill out, letting the powder disperse into the wind. "What we have here is an instant alcohol supplement. It mimics the effects of alcohol within seconds if you bite it." His smile widened. "You should feel honored Sango. It's not every day you fight someone who uses something akin to a stylized drunken brawler – even if it was a bastardized form of it." With a flick of his hand, two male students rushed over to Inuyasha to carry him to the infirmary. He gave Sango a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Under the rules, he was perfectly within his rights using the supplement. A drunken brawler isn't much of a brawler when he's not drunk."

Slapping his hand away, Sango stormed off towards the dorms, a path in the crowd forming before her.

"…yasha." A voice pierced the darkness. Opening his eyes, Inuyasha blinked back the blinding florescent lighting of the long bulb hovering just overtop him. "Inuyasha," the voice repeated.

"Not so loud," he begged, shielding his eyes. His head felt like someone had split it open. He tried to remember how he got… here. The verdict was still out on where _here_ was. It was around this time that his body remembered the thorough beating it had just received. Sucking in a lungful of chilled air, Inuyasha bit back the urge to yell in pain. His lungs felt like he had inhaled burning liquid. His ribs felt like someone had just used them as a xylophone for a few hours. The small injuries on his face were nothing compared to the excruciating agony in his chest. "Oh fuck me," he groaned, too tired to even cradle his chest in his arms.

"No kidding," the voice answered with a slight amused feel to it. "I still think you got the easy end of the bargain though. Why she went easy on you, I'll never know."

The voice suddenly clicked. "Miroku, is that you?" Inuyasha grunted. His throat was scratchy from lack of water and no amount of trying to clear it was helping.

"Who else would it be?" Miroku answered.

"Where are you?" Inuyasha asked, trying to crane his neck to look around him. It appeared that he was surrounded by white partitioning that kept his whereabouts a mystery to him. Judging by the pungent medical smell, he guessed it would be the infirmary.

"The infirmary, where else would we be after fighting one of the strongest people in the school?"

"The morgue came to mind," Inuyasha muttered, wincing as he forced himself to sit up. Grinding his teeth together, he managed to get himself into a sitting position. Still, he had to press an arm against his chest to help with the pain. He had no idea why the pressure helped. At this point, he didn't care why, only that it made the pain somewhat tolerable.

"Funny," Miroku grunted. From the sound of his voice, he was to the right of where Inuyasha was.

"How you holding up?" The last time he had seen Miroku, he was being carried off. The memory… wasn't pretty.

"About as well as anyone could feel after getting their ass beat? The morphine helps, but the drugs do little to help with the whole pride thing. I don't care how crazy ass powerful Sango is, she _is_ still a girl. I think my manly pride took a worse beating than I did." There was a slow sigh. "Once is bad enough, but twice?" There was a slight pause. "But I hear you did some crazy ass things of your own."

"Did I?" To be honest, Inuyasha remembered biting down on the pill, Sango charging him, then… nothing. His next conscious moment was lying here. _Not surprising considering what I took._ He hated using the supplement. It made him feel like crap on _top_ of feeling like a used punching bag. Myoga had given him the case for emergency situations. In addition to all his other training, his old nutty master had trained him how to fight while intoxicated. The reasoning was sound enough. When he was older, there would be times when he would be drinking, either with friends or without and just because he was drunk was no excuse for losing a fight. The idea was sane. Now, forcing a fourteen year old to drink just so you could kick the crap out of them… In the end, Inuyasha was left with the ability he had now. His attack power while drunk was lackluster, but Myoga had never intended him to turn him into a drunken brawler, only giving him the skills to survive an attacker long enough for them to either tire out or the bouncers to get things under control. He winced as he took a deep breath. Still, it the fact he had taken this much damage in that form was a testament to Sango's skill. It made him look at not only her, but the entire student body differently. Inuyasha had been confident in his skill, thinking it was meaningless to 'dumb' down to their level. After all, he had been trained by Myoga. As crazy as the man was, he was infinitely skilled in the art of hurting people with his hands. The more he thought about it, the more Inuyasha realized that a fight between him and Sango could have gone either way – provided he actually fought back. The fight had done nothing to sway his stance on that. After being cooped up so long on that mountain with only an old man as company, he wasn't about to go beating down beautiful girls after he was finally able to walk among them.

"You were holding out on me!"

"Huh?" Inuyasha said, vaguely listening now. He was exploring a knot on the back of his head. Pressing gently on it cause him to wince in discomfort.

"They were talking about you being some sort of drunken Kung-Fu master or something." Inuyasha couldn't help but snort, a move that he instantly regretted as it quickly degraded into agonizing coughs. "You okay over there?"

"Yeah," he finally managed to wheeze out. "But I'm hardly what you think I am."

"Hey, you went two minutes against Sango and can still move around. I'd say there's _something_ there." There was a slight pause. "They didn't even have to use and synth-gel on you."

"Wonderful. No wonder I feel like shit."

"Yeah, well you have your half-demon body to thank for that. With no broken bones, there was no reason to use such expensive treatment. Of course, they usually don't use that expensive stuff on rank-E members unless they absolutely have to." There was a short silence. "You'll be a new man in a couple days."

Inuyasha frowned. "How about you?"

There was a soft chuckle, the pain coming through in his voice. "I'll be fine in a week or so. Luckily, she left my right hand alone this time. I guess she was too focused on my face." More pain-filled laughter followed.

"Right hand?"

"It's my drawing hand. Last time she smashed it pretty thoroughly and it took forever for me to get it back to one-hundred percent."

"She really does hate you, doesn't she?"

"Completely." A long pause followed while Inuyasha searched his body, noting all the minor aches and pains over his body. "I never did find out what you got out of the fight."

"I made her void her fight with you. Both of them," he answered, mind elsewhere.

"Thank God," Miroku said with a sigh of relief. "I was trying to decide if surviving her beating was a blessing or curse." There was hesitation in his voice, like he wasn't sure if he wanted to know the answer. "So what else did you get?"

"Huh?"

"Well you are rank-E. Just getting a couple fights voided isn't enough to balance the scales."

"Oh right. She has to do a photo shoot with you."

"Seriously!"

"Yep."

"Inuyasha?"

"Hmm?" Inuyasha asked, pressing on a tender spot on the side of his right leg. _How the hell did I get hurt here?_ From the indentation of the bruise, it looked like he landed on a sharp stone that failed to break skin, but still did damage.

"Am I dead?"

"If you're dead, than so am I and if that's the case, I sure to hell hope not. I want my afterlife to be a lot less… painful."

"Inuyasha?"

Sighing, Inuyasha winced, muttering a curse. He kept forgetting that his ribs were injured. "What Miroku?"

"I haven't heard of someone in rank-E beating a Triple-A in… well forever. Out of all the rewards you could have asked for, you get them for me."

"There a point to this?"

"Why?"

Inuyasha thought for a moment. _Why did I?_ "I guess because I can tolerate you."

"Gee thanks."

"No problem." There was a moment of silence between them. Inuyasha could hear the buzz of equipment nearby.

"That still doesn't balance things out. There's more, isn't there?"

"Ah fuck," Inuyasha said, suddenly remembering the rest.

"What?" Miroku asked, concerned.

"I have a date with her."

"Y-you do?" There was an awkward pause. "I see…"

"Sorry man, but I had to give myself one if I was going to get you one too. The damn teacher told me I couldn't keep picking rewards for someone else."

"I have one too?" Miroku didn't seem too happy about this.

"Well you asked for one earlier so—"

"Yeah, but I didn't honestly expect to get one! I have to win to get one, remember?"

"Right…"

"Oh fuck," Miroku muttered.

"Eh, it'll work out… probably."

"Probably?" he repeated in a high voice.

"Yeah, you'll have plenty of time to get her to warm up to you since she's going to be our guardian from now on."

"She's _what!_"

"Did I forget to mention that?" Inuyasha said, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. He tested his weight on them. It hurt, but he could stand. "Yeah, thinking back, I guess I shouldn't have asked for that one. My bad." Standing, he found a clean uniform waiting on a chair. Grabbing it, he headed for the bathroom. He really needed a drink.

"I'm doomed. _Doomed!_" Miroku groaned from his hidden bed.

"Oh don't be so melodramatic."

"My business is ruined! Who the hell is going to buy from me with _her_ hanging around all the time? She'll scare all my customers away!"

"Things will work out somehow…"

"Wonderful. Thanks Inuyasha… Thanks a lot."

Grinning, Inuyasha stepped inside the bathroom. "You're welcome," he said as he closed the door behind him.

The library was a separate building nearly as large as the main school building. It was also the second busiest place on campus. Inside, one would find students working diligently on class projects or scourging the endless rows of books to continue their research into various topics. It wasn't all school work either. Many students could be found taking advantage of the solitude the stone and wood building offered to just read or relax in their own comfortable corner. Despite the great deal of effort the designers went through to impart a sense of ease on the students, Sango couldn't help but feel anxious as she walked past the towering bookshelves, frantically twisting her head from side to side as she passed the rows. Near the end of the first floor, she stopped at the familiar sight, relief running through her. She was glad she didn't need to scour through the entire building. It was easy to miss someone in the five story building.

"Kagome," she whispered, coming alongside her friend. Kagome looked up from the book she had open, surprised by Sango's sudden appearance. "Did you find anything?" she asked hopefully.

With a sad smile, Kagome shook her head. "I was just brushing up on some of the lesser known rules for the system and I couldn't find anything that would be of assistance to you," she said, snapping the book closed. Sango felt her shoulders sink in defeat. If anyone could find a way out of her obligations to Inuyasha and Miroku, it would have been Kagome and it looked like her last hope had vanished. With expert care, she casually slid the book back into its place before running her hand along the spines of the books in the row before stopping on another one and pulling it out. She didn't bother looking through the contents after she split the book open, quickly flipping through pages.

"There has to be some way to void the fight," Sango insisted, refusing to give up.

"I never said it was impossible to void the fight," Kagome said. Sango perked up at the news. "I just said it wouldn't be of assistance to you."

"But—"

Kagome stopped her search through the book to look over at Sango. "Inuyasha is rank-E, meaning that if I or anyone else fought him, asking to void the fight he had with you would be over what we are allowed to ask. However, it is perfectly within the right of someone else in rank-E to void the fight with you."

"Then I just get someone from rank-E to beat him." Sango tapped her chin in thought. It would be easy enough for her to find some fool and convince him to do it.

"Impossible," Kagome said, resuming her book search. Before Sango could protest, she continued. "Just think for a moment. He managed to keep up with you for two minutes. I doubt anyone in rank-E could so much as land a punch on him." Her eyes flicked over to hold Sango's gaze. "You were seriously lucky you got away with only a slap and pat."

Sango's face reddened in embarrassment. The last thing she wanted was a reminder of that humiliating moment. "If only Michael-sensei hadn't stopped me," she muttered, clenching her fists. Sighing, Kagome closed the book in defeat, placing it back on the shelf. "What are you looking for anyways?"

"I'm trying to find the style your new friend used."

"He's not my friend," Sango growled. Her favorite daydream the past couple days had been imagining all the ways she wished to ground the worm into fine dust. "Besides, what does it matter? He can only use it for two minutes and after that, he drops unconscious. If it wasn't for that time limit he set, the fight would have been mine."

Kagome ran her hand over more books as she skimmed the titles. "That was the supplement. Had he actually ingested alcohol and waited for that to take effect he could have danced around you for as long as he wasn't sober."

"Still, he was full of openings and never attacked."

"That's what interests me so much," Kagome said, hovering her hand between two books.

"Huh?"

"The openings are to draw you into his attacks. However, from what I keep hearing about the fight, he was never taught any attacks."

"What kind of idiot would teach a style to a student and leave out the entire offensive side?"

Kagome pulled out the larger of the two books. Opening it, she began flipping pages. "Now you know what has me so interested."

"So you're looking for an idiot?"

Kagome smiled, eyes scanning the pages as she flipped through them. "Something like that."

Sango pressed her hands against her hips when she realized she wasn't going to elaborate farther. "No seriously, what are you looking for?"

"I'm not looking for a what, but a 'who,'" Kagome corrected. "I'm trying to find out Inuyasha's master."

There was a long stretch of silence as Sango waited for her to finish with the book. With a defeated sigh, Kagome snapped the book closed and put it back. "I take it you haven't had any luck?"

"No."

"May I ask what possible purpose you have learning that?"

Kagome stopped scanning the book titles to look over at her friend. "You don't find it curious how he is magically able to transfer in the second-to-last year here? How he, a rank-E, managed to defeat you, a Triple-A rank?"

Sango shrugged. "Cheap tricks, that's how."

Grinning, Kagome shook her head. "No, there was nothing cheap about it. Someone put Inuyasha through a very specific and thorough training regimen. I want to find out who."

"Again, I fail to see the 'why' this is all important."

Her grin widening, Kagome clasped her hand against Sango's shoulder. "I want to know exactly what we are dealing with here. This is a critical time for us. For the first time anyone can remember, a Triple-A member has been defeated by a rank-E member. People might get ideas. As a member of the student council, I can't let this pass quietly."

Sango frowned. "He said he doesn't fight girls."

Kagome feigned a hurt look. "Sango, have you that little faith in me?"

She quickly shook her head. "You know that's not what I meant."

"I know," Kagome answered with a smile.

"You know he'll never accept a challenge from you."

Kagome turned back to searching the books. "When the time comes, he won't have a choice."

**Another chapter finished for you reading pleasure. Many thanks to everyone who left reviews.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any characters associated with it. This story is rated for a mature audience.**

Being Triple-A had its privileges and the rooming assignments persisted as one of the attractive ones. The right to pick your own roommate made fighting worth the effort of climbing the ranks. Granted, anyone rank-C or above had freedom of choice, but it was still something to celebrate. The room Sango shared with Kagome was big enough to house four comfortably if two didn't mind sleeping on the couches as there were only two bedrooms. Another perk was a private bathroom. Again, others below her in rank had the same, but none were close to the size and luxury of hers. The only real area Sango shared with Kagome was a living room and a small kitchen attached in case they ever felt the desire to cook something – which was a rare event. Why bother cooking when you could order whatever you wanted from the schools kitchen? It was open all day every day and always had an expert chef on staff. Best of all, it was free for those rank-A and above. The free food was a double-edged sword however. Such wonderful food ready on command was a sure way to put on extra pounds if you didn't watch yourself. Sango had seen male and female alike fall victim to the irresistible call of the chef's daily special. Those that didn't stay fit quickly fell in the rankings. Only a few were allowed in the upper rankings at a time, so the moment you showed weakness, someone was bound to jump on you.

Sango had known Kagome for a long time, their friendship going back even before coming to this academy. She had seen Kagome go through her study binges, but nothing had ever grasped hold of her so completely. Books were piled atop the glass coffee table, some open, others with various papers jutting out from the pages. Kagome sat on one of the couches, books sitting beside her as she gnawed on a pen, engrossed in the book that rested in her lap. Her black hair was sloppily thrown into a ponytail, keeping her hair out of the way as she skimmed the pages. Sighing, Sango shook her head slowly. All she wanted was to take a shower and go to bed. That wasn't an option though, not if she wanted to wake up with Kagome rooted to the couch. Clearing her throat, Sango watched as Kagome jerked in surprise. "I'm back," she said, moving into the living room.

Kagome let the pen fall from her mouth, clasping her hand over her left breast. "You scared me."

Sango frowned, scanning the books that surrounded her friend. She gestured to all the books cluttered around Kagome. "No, _you're_ scaring me. What's all this?"

Kagome's voice was small in hope of disarming the irritation building in Sango. "Research."

Hands on her hips, Sango shook her head. "Kagome…"

"I know that tone and I don't want to hear it!"

"Why is this so important to you? So the guy beat me once using some cheap tricks, big deal." The words left a horrid taste in her mouth. Just thinking of the fight fanned the simmering flames of rage inside her. Kagome spending two days buried in books proved her interest wasn't simply curiosity, but borderline obsession.

"Big deal? Sango that style—"

"You haven't even seen him fight! No one has! All we know is that he knows how to dance around like an idiot and take punches." When it looked like she was about to protest, Sango gave her a glare.

Kagome closed the book on her lap with a sigh, pushing it away. "Fine, I'll take a break."

"Thank you," Sango said, puffing her chest out in victory. It was the best she was going to get in this situation. Kagome wouldn't drop something that interested her. Sango walked farther into the living room as Kagome glanced over at the clock, a frown forming on her face.

"Wow, I didn't realize it was so late." She turned to give Sango a suspicious look. "And just what were you out doing?" Before she could do or say anything, Sango felt her face heat, giving Kagome all she needed to know. "Spending time with this mysterious boyfriend of yours?" Sango stayed silent as she sat on the couch across from Kagome, trying to keep the embarrassment off her face. "You know that sooner or later, you're going to have to introduce me to him."

"Eventually," Sango said. She knew Kagome wanted to meet her mysterious lover. Despite her curiosity, Kagome respected her decision to keep it secret and didn't pry. Sango had a dozen reasons why she was keeping things a secret. The last thing she wanted was another set of rules placed on her. Once the school knew she was in a relationship, things would take a turn for the worst. Sango knew she would be a high-profile target. There were men waiting for her to enter a relationship. They made no effort hiding what they wanted from her. It was frightening considering who some of them were. Sango knew she was an excellent fighter, and part of that required you to understand your limits. Even Kagome might have trouble with them one on one. Fortunately, she was able to turn down their challenges. Being in a relationship would destroy that right, especially since the ones in question worked the system to their advantage. Sango knew that they could easily top the Triple-A rankings, yet they were officially only rank-A. They had the annoying tendency to lose their ranking matches. To a fighter, they were fearsome; to a woman, horrifying. Sango worked every day refining her skill, hoping to one day match and exceed Kagome. She knew she was envious of her friend's skill. Kagome never had problems like these. If she decided to start a relationship, she had to be more concerned with her partner rather than herself. Few were dumb enough to challenge her with the intention to win; fewer still had ability to actually beat her.

Kagome sighed. "You know you put me in a difficult position, right? As a member of the student council, I'm supposed to report your relationship."

"But as my friend, you'll look the other way?" Sango offered.

There was a short pause. "Yes," she finally said, shaking her head as she pinched the bridge of her nose.

Smiling, Sango leapt off the couch. Sliding around the opposing couch, she wrapped her arms around Kagome, hugging her as she gave her a quick peck on the cheek. "That's why I love you."

Wrinkling her nose, Kagome waved her off as she clawed at her cheek. "I'm terrified to imagine where that mouth has been."

"No need to be jealous," Sango teased.

"My sex life is wonderful, thanks."

"Right," she said disbelievingly. "You spend more on batteries than if you would just go out."

"Ha-ha, funny," she said, deadpan.

Grinning, Sango headed towards her room, intent on taking her shower. "Well I'm off to bed. Oh, and don't worry about me. I can barely hear the buzzing noises through the walls." With a yelp she ran to the protection of her door as a book sailed through the air. Laughing, she darted inside her room before more could follow.

Rolling his arm in a wide circle, Inuyasha discovered a newfound appreciation for his demon heritage. It was amazing how quickly his body healed itself after a long nights sleep. After a few days, the pain was gone. The only clue to his previous injuries being discolored skin which grew fainter each passing day. School life was a little different. The same dreary drudgery day after day might have been more interesting if he wasn't entirely lost to the material. It was his classmates that broke the otherwise normal routine. He could sense the confusion in their glances. Inuyasha didn't need to actually hear the whispered conversations to know what they were about. _'Was it a fluke or something more?'_ The burning question rippled through the school. Like wildfire on dry timber, the entire school was alight with speculation. Was this mysterious transfer student hiding something or did he simply luck out with the already fatigued Sango? She did get into the fight right after winning against Miroku. What concerned Inuyasha wasn't the speculation about his skill, but the rumors questioning his sexual orientation. He overheard one girl explaining the situation as, 'A knight in shining armor, Inuyasha leapt to protect his fallen lover.' The women seemed to swoon over the mental image it created; thrilled that Miroku's attention wasn't on them for a change. Furious, Inuyasha was flabbergasted at his peer's inability to recognize a friendship. How did stopping a merciless beating of a poor man automatically equate to there being something more behind it? Besides, Miroku's known obsession with women should have blown a hole in any rumor ship about any homosexuality between the two. Not so apparently. Miroku's perverseness was so vast in his peer's minds that it was believed to extend to males as well.

The few students who seemed to take an interest in him once more vanished once Miroku was released from the infirmary. He looked a lot better than he did a few days ago thanks to repeated Synth-gel treatments. He still wore a blackened eye and his lip was swollen, but he looked remarkable considering how terrible he had looked. Miroku wasn't pleased about being released so quickly, but he nurse refused to grant him any more days of recovery. Now that he was free to move about, it meant that Sango would start her guardian duty soon.

"I can't believe you did that," Miroku said, shaking his head as he repeated himself.

Inuyasha shrugged. "It was on the spot. It seemed like a decent idea at the time." He glanced over as they continued walking down the hall. People seemed to slip out of their path. Spending a few days away from Miroku had gotten him used to his fellow classmates not doing that again. "Besides, I thought you liked her."

"Right, I _liked_ her; as in the past tense of the verb." Miroku tenderly pressed his hand against his black eye. "Having them beat the shit out of you tends to kill the warm and fuzzy feelings."

"Sorry," Inuyasha said scratching the back of his neck. "At least you can get a little vengeance for what she did. You finally get that photo shoot you wanted. Take some of those questionable photos you're so famous for and pass them out." Grinning, he rubbed his chin, proud of his idea. "You'll score points with all the guys and get your revenge all at the same time. Then you can rub it in when you take her out for dinner."

"I couldn't do that!" Miroku said in horror.

"What? Why not? She deserves it for what she did."

"Well… uh…" He seemed to have trouble finding a reason. "What's to stop her from retaliating?"

"She's supposed to protect you."

"Yes, from challenges. That's not what I'm worried about since I didn't fight much to begin with. What worries me is what she'll do with my business."

Inuyasha frowned. "You think of it as a business?"

Miroku crossed his arms, grimacing at the movement. "I'm providing a service aren't I?"

"Okay, so what could she possibly do?"

"I told you before; she'll chase all my customers away. No customers means no money and no money means I can't pay for tuition."

Inuyasha sighed. "I forgot about that." He frowned. "That reminds me, why _are_ you here? You seem out of place. Wouldn't you be better suited for an art school or something?"

Looking away, Miroku glanced out the windows as they passed. "I have my reasons for being here."

Inuyasha knew he wasn't going to get anything else out of him so decided to shift back to the issue of Sango. "So when are you going to have your date and photo thing?"

"I don't know," Miroku said, his attention returning to Inuyasha. "I've been trying to avoid thinking about it."

"You make it sound like it's the end of the world. Do you know how things are going to turn out? No. Who knows, things might work out."

"What are you, a matchmaker?" He continued before Inuyasha could say anything. "Yes, it's true that I liked her in the past, but things are different now. I didn't ask for this. Don't try to make it sound like I should be happy." Inuyasha slowed to a stop as Miroku stormed off. Already he could sense the whispers of the students who witnessed Miroku's explosion. Inuyasha felt like having an explosion himself, but the glare towards the nearest group of whispering students had to do. They quickly fell silent before scarpering down the hall. Miroku was entitled to his anger, yes, but blaming it on him was a little unfair. What else was he supposed to do? At the time, it was the only thing he could think of. With how much he talked about Sango, what was Inuyasha supposed to think? All he knew was that Miroku had liked her once. All he wanted was to give Miroku the chance he deserved.

Suddenly, he had an idea. He wasn't quite sure where it came from, but he felt it was a great way to make the best of the situation. Miroku wouldn't like it, but Inuyasha was determined. After all, it was a great way to get back at Sango for what she had done without going so far to make her want to fight back. Grinning, Inuyasha rushed off to catch up with Miroku.

Sango was doing her best to make the two feel as uncomfortable as possible, fixing them with a cold glare as she crossed her arms over her chest. These were the last two people she wanted to be associating with and she made it painfully obvious to them that their presence was irksome. Inuyasha seemed immune to her glare, an annoyance exasperated by her 'defeat' against him. In fact, he seemed just as bothered with her presence as she was with his. It made her question why he even added the condition of her guarding them if he didn't want her around.

While Inuyasha was immune against her glare, Miroku crumbled under it. It almost made up for the non-effect it had on Inuyasha – almost. She relished how a simple look caused him to shrink like the coward he was. In the back of her mind, she knew she shouldn't be taking pleasure in it, but it was overruled by her boiling dislike. _Of all the things that could come from the fight, why do most revolve around _him_?_ She actually found herself wishing Inuyasha had asked for more traditional things. Spending a night or two with him was more attractive than spending a minute with Miroku. Hell, she might have even enjoyed it. Despite his numerous other flaws, Inuyasha wasn't horrid looking. He wasn't her type, but she could stomach the idea. Anything was better than Miroku.

"So?" she said coldly, tightening her arms over her chest. "How exactly is this going to work?"

"Well, we've been discussing possibilities," Inuyasha said.

"Wonderful," she said with a roll of her eyes. "Let's hear them." _This might not be so bad if I have some say in it._

"We actually already decided."

"_You_ decided," Miroku mumbled, obviously unhappy with the coming decision.

"And…?" Sango said, digging her nails into the skin of her arm.

"Guarding us all the time would be impossible."

"Obviously," she said mockingly.

Inuyasha smiled. It sent a chill down her back. She wasn't going to like this one bit. "I want you to train Miroku to defend himself."

Her jaw went slack. "Excuse me?"

"You know, teach him to fight." He held up a finger to stop her before she could protest. "And it is within the rules, I know because I checked."

"No, _I_ did," Miroku grumbled, crossing his arms. Sango noticed he was doing his best not to look at her. It suited her just fine.

"Anyways, it doesn't matter," Inuyasha said; brushing aside Miroku's disgruntled mumble. "The best way to protect someone is teaching them how to protect themselves." He locked eyes with her. "Right?"

Her voice was low. "If you think I'm going to teach him—"

"Then perhaps we should bring this before a teacher?"

His words caused her to stop short. Gritting her teeth, she forced something that resembled a smile. Her mind struggled to find a way out. "I agree that teaching him would be the best way, but if wouldn't it be better for you to teach him? By beating me, doesn't that make you more qualified?"

Inuyasha rubbed his chin. "Probably," he mused, nodding slowly. It took every ounce of Sango's willpower to hold back. He continued, not realizing how close he was skirting danger. "But I'm not teacher material. Besides, it's not my responsibility to protect him." His smile was back. "It's yours."

"Why don't you just toss me into a pit filled with hungry bears instead? I think I'd be safer with them."

"I could arrange that," Sango snapped, happy to have an outlet. She had to tread carefully around Inuyasha until the conditions of the fight were met, but Miroku was different. There was nothing in the agreement saying she had to be nice to him.

"What did I tell you?" Miroku said, looking to Inuyasha. "This isn't going to work."

"I agree," Sango said reluctantly. It felt awful to agree with him, but if this was a chance of getting out of it, she had to take it.

"Well that's unfortunate because it's how things are going to be." He turned to leave before catching himself, looking as if he suddenly remembered something important. He looked at her. "Oh yeah, you have until the end of the school year to train him to satisfactory levels. Failure to do so would mean a breach of the agreed upon terms."

"You can't be serious," Sango said, mouth open in shock.

"It's not like your training him from scratch. He already has the basics down. You just need to work on refining them." He smiled as he faced Miroku. "And let me know when Sango's going to pose for your…" There was a slight hesitation. "Art," he finished. "I'll try to be somewhere other than our room." Without looking at her, Inuyasha headed off down the hall. Face red from a combination of anger and embarrassment, Sango glared at Miroku who shifted uncomfortably in place.

"So," he started softly.

"We'll start tomorrow," she growled, spinning on her heels. Spending any more time around him and she was going to send him right back to the infirmary. Clenching her fists, she stormed down the hall. It was hard to think with all the emotions boiling within her. She needed to vent. A small smile tugged at her lips. She knew just the person to see.

**It's been awhile since I worked on this so I forced myself to finish this chapter, and I mean forced literally. I'm having a tough time writing it. It's not plot issues or writing block, but rather me just not wanting to work on it.**


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